Daddy Dearest
by BurningBomb303
Summary: Tsuna's mom insists on bringing his boyfriend, Gokudera, over for dinner. Tsuna is terrified of what his dad will think and how everything will turn out. 5927, beware of angry Iemitsu in later chapters
1. Chapter 1

"Tsu-kun, why don't you ever bring him over?" Nana asked, lifting her head briefly from her cooking.

Tsuna looked up from the homework that he was obviously never going to finish, blushing a little. "Um, who?" he stalled.

"Gokudera-kun. You two are dating now, aren't you? You should bring him over for dinner!"

Tsuna's peach skin disappeared under a barrage of ruby red blush and he banged his head against the table in shame, wishing he would disappear. But still he tried to hide it, "Um, I don't know what you're talking about?"

"That settles that, then. He'll come over for dinner of Saturday. And what luck! Your father is coming home on Friday!" Nana said cheerily.

If you think it was hard telling his family that his boyfriend would be coming over on Saturday, think how hard it was to tell the actual boyfriend.

Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Gokudera were all eating lunch on the roof as usual, munching mildly on their lunches. Yamamoto, being the mutual third best friend in the group, of course he knew that they were going out.

"Um, Hayato-kun, um," Tsuna couldn't seem to get the words out. He knew that Hayato loved him, but he was still scared of him just a little bit.

"Tsuna, what's wrong?" Hayato suddenly looked worried and slightly angry. "Someone hurt you, didn't they? I will kill them!"

"No, no, Hayato-kun, its just that, um… what are you doing on Saturday night?" Tsuna finally said.

"If you want to do something, Tsuna, I'm always free," Gokudera flashed his famous smile, which had been oh-so-rare before they had started dating, but after they started going out, it was almost always plastered to his face.

"Okay, because my mom wants you to come over for dinner," Tsuna said it all in one breath. There was a heavy silence after that, a few seconds after which Yamamoto started laughing.

"That's gonna be a tough one," Yamamoto said, chuckling.

But surprisingly, Gokudera just shrugged. "I don't see what the big deal is. I've eaten at Tsuna's house before. Nothing's really different except that we're dating." He leaned back against the wire fence that surrounded the roof of the school and took a long swig of his can of green tea.

"Yes, but…" Tsuna had a feeling that Hayato would misunderstand in this manner, so he had prepared himself for having to explain it, but he _really _didn't want to say it.

"Well… um, actually, Hayato-kun, it won't be just my mom. My dad is home too," Tsuna said, twiddling his fingers nervously.

"So? Your parents already know me, there's nothing different except that we're dating," the Storm guardian said, shrugging.

"B-But still, even if you say that, my dad…" Tsuna said.

Tsuna was trying to think of a way to explain to Hayato that even though his father was almost never home; he had always relayed one thing on his son.

"_That's right, Tsunayoshi! You're gonna grow up to be quite a lady-killer," his father had slurred drunkenly. Tsuna was about eight and his father was home from one of his trips but he was drinking heavily, although it didn't matter. Tsuna was too young to understand and Nana just found it amusing. "So you have to bring home a pretty, little lady, okay?"_

"_Lady?" the young Tsuna asked, looking up at his father with an adorable, confused look._

"_Oh, dear, leave him alone, he's so young," Nana said, looking up from her cooking just to glare teasingly at her husband._

"_Don't be like that, Nana, you know its true," he grabbed Tsuna and hoisted him up from under his arms, holding him up to display to his wife. "Look at this face. He's so cute he'll be bringing girls home to us in no time!" He chortled heartily._

"_Dad," Tsuna whined a little. "Put me down, that hurts!"_

"_Don't start crying! That sensitive side will kill the women every time!" _

"_I don't understand what you're saying, Daddy!" the little Tsuna squirmed, tears forming in his eyes. _

"_Now, son," Iemitsu turned his son around and placed the young boy in his lap. "Do you understand what this means?" He held up four fingers._

"_That's the number four!" Tsuna said, feeling like he understood. _

"_Yes, but it also means to fu-" but instead of finishing his lecture, he received a rather hard smack on the head, courtesy of Nana and her ladle. She started to scold him, but he didn't hear him, he'd fallen asleep in a matter of seconds._

_How the hell do I tell him something like that?_ Tsuna ran his fingers through his thick, chocolate locks and sighed heavily.

The bell had rung and the three boys started to make their way back down the hallway and they started to intermix with the crowd of kids in the hall. They started to blend in, their selves and their own worries and problems all melting and molding together.

They were all melted together, but obviously not forgotten. Tsuna's mind was reeling and he knew what a serious problem it was for him to keep this to himself. There was no way he could get out of it; his mom was determined and Gokudera seemed indifferent. He was jittery and unfocused through the rest of his afternoon classes, his mind only came back into focus when his teacher scolded him for not paying attention and getting yet another question wrong.

When school ended, signified by the usual sing-songy bell, Tsuna exhaled with a mixture of relief and exasperation.

"Tsuna," the familiar husky voice woke him up a little more. He felt a long, slender hand slide in between his fingers and squeeze his hand playfully.

"Hayato-kun," Tsuna said, smiling.

"Come over to my place today, okay? Let's hang out, just the two of us!" Hayato's grin was incomparable and it was believable to say that that might be one of the reasons Tsuna fell for him to begin with.

"O-Okay!" Tsuna said happily. But inside, he was having a vicious mental argument with himself.

_This is a good time to tell him._

_But he's so happy to hang out with me! I could never crush his feelings by bringing up something so… _

_Maybe if I just find a way to slip it into conversation._

_Would he really appreciate a warning like this?_

_But I couldn't possibly keep it to myself! What kind of boyfriend would I be if...?_

Tsuna hadn't even noticed it, but somehow they'd ended up in front of Gokudera's house already. Tsuna had been so lost in thought that he didn't realize that they'd arrived until Gokudera took back his hand to unlock the door to his apartment.

When they were inside, Gokudera had started up a kettle of tea and Tsuna had started setting up their homework on the table in the silverette's bedroom, but their schoolwork wasn't exactly at the top of their list of priorities.

He heard the door open and close behind him, and then he heard footsteps bounding toward him. The next second, he was pulled around quickly and his lips were sandwiched between another pair. He felt a slender pair of arms wrap around his neck and pull him close.

He grunted a little, not annoyed but kind of relieved and excited. He placed his hand on his boyfriend's face and caressed his cheek a little.

Gokudera broke the kiss and placed his forehead on the brunette's, staring into Tsuna's chestnut eyes with his own stormy green orbs. He was grinning like a small child.

"You know, I didn't want to say it in front of Yamamoto because it would sound so lame, but I'm actually really excited to go to your house for dinner," Gokudera said brightly.

_Swell_, Tsuna thought, suppressing a sigh as to not confuse his lover. Instead, he swallowed and said, "Yeah, I'm excited too. My mom said she's going to be cooking for it all day Saturday."

"I'm more than happy to try anything she makes," Gokudera said, snuggling his face against Tsuna's cheek lovingly.

"Y-Yeah," Tsuna said.

Gokudera distanced himself, but only a little, his arms still around Tsuna, but still close enough that their noses were practically blushing.

"Are you okay? It seems that whenever I bring up the dinner, you get upset. Do you not want me to come? I know we just started going out, so if that's too much…" Gokudera muttered, blushing.

"No, no, no!" Tsuna started shaking his head vigorously. "No, that's not it at all! I-I love you, Hayato," he blushed. "Its not me, i-its my dad."

Hayato was blushing a little, still caught off guard from what Tsuna had said, but then he regained himself. "Your father?"

"Yeah, its just that, well, my dad…" Tsuna went through the entire story of what his dad had said when he was younger and why he was worried.

The two boys had separated by now but they weren't very far apart, they were sitting right next to each other.

"So you think your dad will have a problem that you and I are-" it seemed that he couldn't say the word 'gay', they'd never really thought about it that way, they were always just happy to be together; it never really mattered to them that they were both guys.

"I can't say for sure, but I'm almost positive that he'll be a little… surprised," Tsuna said, looking away. _This is so not fair to Hayato, _Tsuna thought. _It's so unfair that he has to worry about this._

"Its okay, right?" Gokudera said, surprising Tsuna. He looked over and saw that his boyfriend was smiling happily. "If it's us, its okay, right? We love each other a lot, so it'll be okay no matter what happens, right?"

Tsuna's face turned a deep red, but he was feeling so happy inside that he could barely stand it. He threw his arms around the bomber and squeezed him tightly.

"Yeah!" he said, digging his chest into Gokudera's chest excitedly.

"Mom, what time is Dad coming home tonight?" Tsuna asked through a mouthful of his breakfast. It was Friday now and he had settled down about the dinner party. Gokudera's reassurance had completely dissolved any worries he'd had about Saturday.

"Oh, he called me yesterday night. Something came up and he won't be coming home until right before dinner," Nana said lightly, turning around from her cooking to look over at her son.

"Oh, well, did he say anything about dinner?" Tsuna asked casually, taking a sip from his tea.

"He doesn't know," she said simply, turning back to the stove.

Tsuna coughed and gagged, spilling tea all over his food and the table.

"Heh-heh, Tsuna can't even drink tea right," Lambo taunted. "Ba~ka!"

Tsuna ignored him and turned to his mother. "Mom! Why didn't you tell him?!"

"It never came up," Nana said, grinning like not telling her AWOL husband that her son's boyfriend was coming over for dinner was something all mothers did.

"What kind of answer is that?" Tsuna yelled, not believing his ears. He blushed and looked down at his hands, which he had been twiddling nervously since his mother's first announcement. "D-Does he know about Hayato and me?"

"No, that never came up either," she said, smiling and tilting her head innocently.

"Of course it never came up if you never mentioned it!" Tsuna said, clawing at his brunette locks angrily.

"Oh, its no big deal. Your father's always been excited for the day when you bring a 'special friend' home!" Nana said, cupping her face with her hand and grinning nostalgically. "He always said that he'd rush right home when that day came."

"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure he never expected my 'special friend' to be…" he trailed off, too embarrassed to say anything in front of the kids, who had been eavesdropping for some time now.

"Well, why can't you call him now or something? I really think he should know!" Tsuna insisted.

"Oh, Tsu-kun, you know how busy he is with that job of his," Nana said.

_Yeah, more than you do,_ Tsuna thought, annoyed.

"He said that we wouldn't be able to contact him from the time I stopped talking with him to when he got home, anyway," she said.

"Perfect," Tsuna moaned.

Nana giggled and hugged her child. "Oh, there's nothing to worry about, Tsu-kun," she said. "Iemitsu likes Gokudera-san. He won't have a problem with him staying for dinner."

"That's not what I mean," Tsuna sighed exasperatedly.

"I'm leaving," Tsuna grabbed his bag and walked out the door, shutting it behind him a little harder than he'd meant to, but he couldn't help it. Ever since he'd talked to Hayato he'd felt much better about it all, but now…

He'd never really thought much into it, but he'd sort of been counting on his father knowing in advance. No matter how many people reassured him, he was still really nervous and he thought that if his father beforehand it would cushion the blow. He groaned and turned the corner out of his house's gate and walked down the street, only to run into a soft, fleshy wall.

"Good morning, Tsuna!" A cheerful voice sing-songed the greeting and the young Vongola didn't need to look up to tell that it was his boyfriend.

"'M-Morning," Tsuna muttered.

"Hm? What's wrong?" Gokudera asked. His expression changed to that of anger and concern in an instant and he said, "Wait, what happened? Did someone do something to you? I will _kill_ them!"

"No, no, no one did anything, Hayato-kun," Tsuna said. "I'm just a little worried about tomorrow."

Hayato's face relaxed again and he smiled reassuringly. He intertwined his slender pianist fingers with Tsuna's small, delicate ones. "I thought you were okay with this now. Why are you so worried?"

"Its just that-"

Gokudera smirked at him teasingly and said, "I understand." He turned around dramatically and said, "You just don't have faith in our love."

"No!" Tsuna said seriously, even though he couldn't help but smile. Gokudera had adopted quite a sense of humor since they'd started going out. "No, that's not it! Quit misunderstanding me," Tsuna said, pouting. "Its just that my mom told me that she never really told my dad about the dinner… or _us_." They'd finally started their walk to school, still hand-in-hand, but that made Gokudera stop. The look on his face made Tsuna wince.

"Hayato…" Tsuna sighed and let go of his boyfriend's hand. "Let's just cancel it. My mom will understand if I tell her you have something to do and my dad will never know about it."

"No, no!" Gokudera said quickly. "I'm fine with it. Just fine, see?" He smiled, as if it would prove his point, but it was weak and meaningless, empty.

"Hayato, don't lie to me," Tsuna said, clenching his fists. "Please."

Gokudera looked thrown off guard and mumbled, "I'm sorry. Its just that…."

"I'm scared," Tsuna finished for him. He couldn't read his Storm guardian's face, but it was obvious that they were thinking the same thing at that moment.

"I'm scared of what my dad will say about us being together. I'm scared that he's not going to approve and he'll forbid me from seeing you. But most of all, I'm scared that you won't want to be together anymore," he'd only thought about this last point for a little while, but this is thought is the one that scared him the most.

"What?" Gokudera looked surprised.

"No one wants to be with someone that causes them this much trouble, right? Why would you waste you time on someone who makes you worried about stuff like this all the time?" Tsuna said, looking down at the ground.

Gokudera's eyes narrowed, but Tsuna didn't notice, he was still looking at the ground.

"I really wouldn't want you to go through something like that anyway. You shouldn't be with someone whose family doesn't love him as much as much as he deserves," Tsuna said. "As much as _I_ love you."

He felt the tears coming now and he lifted his sleeve to wipe them away, but it wasn't needed. Gokudera had turned around and hugged Tsuna so hard against his chest that the tears were dried almost instantly against the fabric.

"Don't you ever say that!" Hayato was pulling him close. "I would _never_ leave you for something as ridiculous as that. I love you too much to let something like your dad get in the way."

"Hayato-kun…" Tsuna felt touched and he hugged his lover tight, digging his face into his chest.

"You know what this means, don't you?" Hayato said, pulling away from the embrace, putting his strong hands on Tsuna's shoulders, and looking into those deep brown eyes.

"What?"

"That now we have to go through with this," Gokudera said as he started walking down the street towards Namimori Junior High, even though they'd definitely be late by this time. "I have to prove myself and my feelings for you to you and your father. I can't leave this hanging up in the air."

"H-Hayato," Tsuna said. This seemed a little unreasonable, but Tsuna smiled to himself. He loved how Hayato could say what he was thinking even though it was kind of embarrassing and it was almost a little lame (he'd never admit that to Gokudera, it'd break his heart.) "Okay!"

After a long day at school, during which they had to stand outside in the hall for being late and Gokudera beat up only three people (all in all a pretty peaceful day), the bell had rung and Tsuna was gathering his things to go home when he heard a small moaning behind him.

He turned around to see a girl crying softly behind him. She had her face buried in her hands and her shoulders were shaking. He was about to ask her what was wrong when another girl in his class approached her.

"Hey! What's wrong, Natsumi-chan?" the girl ran up to her with a worried look on her face.

The crying girl, Natsumi, lifted her head and looked at her friend. Her face was red and puffy and her face was twisted into a look of absolute pain.

"O-Oh, i-its nothing," she hiccupped. "Its just that… Tadashi-kun broke up with me."

"What? Why?!" the friend asked, astonished. "You two were getting along fine yesterday!"

"Yeah, b-but yesterday, he came over for dinner," Natsumi sobbed.

_Oh, I see where this is going, _Tsuna thought, rolling his eyes, but feeling worried all the same. Listening to this would probably, no, definitely make him feel worse, but no matter what he couldn't seem to move.

"Oh, no, didn't your parents like him?"

Natsumi shook her head. "They started calling him out about something that doesn't even matter and earlier today he told me that we should break up! Its not fair! Its not even my fault!"

"Aw, don't worry, Natsumi-chan, he's no good for you if he breaks up with you for that anyway," the friend said, rubbing her friend's back.

But by now, Tsuna had run away, his bag slung loosely over his shoulder, the weight of the bag slamming into his thigh with every long stride he took. His face was red and his eyes were swimming with tears, his heart was pounding and he couldn't form a coherent thought.

_That's it. I'm going home, I can't take this anymore! I don't want to think about…. I don't want to lose him. I have to tell Mom to cancel the dinner. I'm not… I can't…_

His mind was completely obliterated, he couldn't think straight, but there was one thing that he knew. He couldn't go through with this dinner. He was too scared. Being with Hayato was the best thing that had ever happened to him and he wasn't ready to let that go.

He ran all the way through town and somehow ended up in front of Gokudera's house because he had nowhere else to go.

He was tired from running and he was panting heavily, so he sat down in front of Gokudera's front door and just sat there. The Storm Guardian must have had something to do back at school, because Tsuna must have been waiting for an hour before he caught a glimpse of the silverette.

Gokudera looked annoyed by something but he instantly brightened (as always) when he saw the small brunette. He jogged down the hall towards Tsuna, smiling that wonderful smile of his.

"H-Hi," Tsuna said timidly, lifting his chin slightly so Hayato could kiss him easier.

"What are you doing here? I was looking for you at home and couldn't find you, so I thought you went home," Gokudera said, putting his arms around Tsuna and pulling him close. "Where did you go?"

"Well, there was… um…" Tsuna tried to form a sentence, even a phrase that made sense but he could feel the lump forming in his throat and his eyes had started to ache ever since Gokudera had hugged him. _He doesn't want to hear me whine again. He doesn't want to be bothered by me. He's already tried to console me so many times. He won't…_

But Tsuna couldn't take it anymore. His lip started quivering and the tears started again and before he knew it he was blubbering and sobbing into his boyfriend's chest yet again.

"H-Hayato-kun!" Tsuna hiccupped and gripped Gokudera's shirt as he cried into it. "I don't- I can't…" he trailed off and his words were replaced with heavy, violent sobs.

He felt Gokudera's arms leave him, which made start crying harder but a strong arm hooked around his shoulders and another grabbed under his legs and he was swept off the ground within seconds. Gokudera was carrying his in a princess lift. The gray-haired teen opened the door and shut it behind them without so much as having to shift Tsuna's weight.

Tsuna didn't even have time to question him as Hayato swept him through the small apartment so fast that it was all just a blur of color and they had somehow ended up in Gokudera's room so quickly that Tsuna couldn't even remember making the trip there. Gokudera kicked the door shut behind him and then placed his boss on his bed as gently as if he had been handling a porcelain doll.

"H-Hayato-kun…" Tsuna started but stopped when he saw the look that Gokudera was giving him. It was so full of love and happiness and caring that Tsuna almost started crying again.

Without a word Gokudera dove onto his bed, tackling the young Vongola and kissing him fiercely. It certainly surprised Tsuna, but he didn't struggle, he simply laid against the bed as Gokudera wrapped his arms around him.

When Hayato broke the kiss, he looked down at Tsuna with the same look as before, one filled with so much love and passion that one could wonder what kept these two apart for so long. It was obvious they didn't want to be anywhere else besides each other's arms.

"I'm still worried too," Hayato said. Tsuna's eyes widened a little. How had Hayato known? It was almost as if their minds were one. "You're still worried that I'd leave you, right?"

Tsuna bent his head against his friend's chest and nodded into it, feeling the tears start up again. He wrapped his arms around Hayato's slender form and scooched himself closer to him.

"I'm gonna tell you a secret," Hayato said, whispering into his partner's ear even though there was no one else around to listen in on their conversation. "That's exactly what I'm scared of too."

"What?" Tsuna asked, his voice muffled as he tried to form the question against the fabric of Gokudera's shirt. Was Hayato scared of leaving Tsuna too? Was he scared that he'd get so pissed by his family that he'd break up with him?

"I'm scared that you'll break up with me," Hayato said, holding his little brunette tight.

"Why?" Tsuna asked, still muffled and completely surprised.

"Well, you may not have noticed… but I'm not someone that anyone's parents would really like," Gokudera said, obvious sarcasm in his voice.

"What?" Tsuna was really only repeating himself over and over again, but it was really all he could do.

"I'm… a little… _abrasive_," Gokudera muttered.

That sent Tsuna into a fit of giggles and his shoulders shook, which of course shook both of them.

"What?" Hayato was blushing now.

"N-Nothing," Tsuna said, still laughing a little bit. "You're perfect."

"I was just worried that you would break up with me because I've caused you so much trouble. Not just because I'm a guy, but because of my… nature."

"No, I don't know why I was so worried. I love you, Hayato."

"I love you too, Tsuna."

They stayed there for a long time, not really having to do anything besides lay there in each other's arms. Where else did they need to go?

They had been completely rid of their fears about the next night. They were both completely calm… that is, until they stood together, hand in hand, outside of Tsuna's home.


	2. Chapter 2

"Are you ready?" Gokudera squeezed Tsuna's hand comfortingly, but Tsuna could still feel the film of sweat on his lover's clammy hands.

"No," Tsuna replied, not wanting to lie to his best friend. "But we're gonna do this, right?"

"_Hayato-kun, why are you so worried about what to wear?" Tsuna asked, sprawled lazily across Gokudera's bed. His arms were behind his head, propping him up just enough so that he could watch his lover anxiously._

_Hayato looked back at the brunette and said, "Well, if you must know, I'm going over a friend's house for dinner tonight."_

_Tsuna smiled and decided to go along with the joke._

"_Oh? And what is this friend of yours like?" Tsuna asked, rolling over onto his stomach and resting his chin on the palms of his hands._

"_Nothing special. Kinda short, brown hair. Cute kid, though," Hayato teased, holding up yet another one of his black shirts (it was the only color he ever pulled out of his closet.) _

"_Oh, no!" Tsuna giggled, placing an adorable look of fake sadness on his face. "He might steal you from me."_

"_Never!" Gokudera walked over to the side of the bed and tackled Tsuna onto it._

"_Don't you have to get ready?" Tsuna said, snaking his arms around his partner's neck despite himself. _

"_Yes," Hayato then placed his lips fiercely on Tsuna's and Tsuna returned it happily._

Tsuna fingered the wool scarf that was wrapped around his neck nervously. What a bad sign, getting a hickey a couple of hours before they were supposed to meet with his parents, although he couldn't really say it was only Gokudera's fault, he'd kissed the bomber back just as excitedly.

"Are you just going to wear that scarf during dinner?" Hayato asked, feeling the wool fibers of the scarf himself.

"Yeah, I have to," Tsuna said. "I'm pretty sure bruises like that won't bode well with my dad."

"I-I'm sorry," Hayato looked embarrassed and his eyes became fixated on the ground.

"No, its not your fault," Tsuna said. He took the silverette's hand in his own again and squeezed it. "But we probably should've been a little less carefree. It feels weird not to be so nervous."

"Yeah," Hayato answered. Another minute or so passed before one of them spoke again.

"You know, we're still standing outside of your house," Gokudera said awkwardly. "Shouldn't we go in soon?"

"Probably," Tsuna sighed.

He took his hand away so he could get his key, but before he could, Gokudera's arms were around him.

"We're going to be fine," he said reassuringly. Tsuna smiled and hugged his boyfriend back, enjoying the familiar smell of tobacco and soap.

"I know," Tsuna said. They stood there for probably another minute or so when Tsuna reluctantly disentangled himself from the Storm guardian and got his key to unlock the door.

They walked in quietly, so quietly that for a second they thought the house was empty, but the next second, another pair of arms were around Hayato.

"Welcome to our home, Hayato-kun!" Sawada Nana said happily, stepping back from the hug and smiling.

"U-Um, thank you," Gokudera was looking at the ground, embarrassed.

"Mom, don't make him uncomfortable," Tsuna was also obviously embarrassed. He looked over at Hayato apologetically. And yet…

"Thank you so very much, Okaa-sama!" Gokudera bowed low. "I'm honored to be welcomed into your home!"

"Hayato…." Tsuna turned to his boyfriend. _Here we go again_, he had become accustomed to the Storm guardian's exuberance when it came to Tsuna and his family but it still threw him off all the time. "Anyway, is Dad home yet?"

"No, but it won't be long now. Why don't you take Hayato-kun up to your room now and I'll call you down when its time, okay?" Nana smiled and then walked back into the kitchen, waving brightly as she went.

Tsuna and Gokudera stood there for a few seconds, dumbfounded.

Then there was a loud, obnoxious laugh and something hit Tsuna hard in the jaw.

"Aha! Tsuna and Ahou-dera are here!" Lambo said jubilantly. "Come to eat another dinner with us, Ahou-dera? You're a freeloader, you know!"

"Lambo…" Tsuna said mildly, all too well knowing what was going to come next.

"Ah, dumb cow! You're so lucky that I'm here for a special reason tonight!" Gokudera said, a vein appearing out of his forehead.

"Heh, oh, really?" Lambo sneered. "You're just scared to fight the great and powerful Lambo-san!"

"Just ignore him," Tsuna said reassuringly as a shadow of rage passed over the silverette's pale face.

"Lambo! Leave Gokudera-sand and Tsuna-san alone!" I-Pin ran up to them and bopped Lambo on the head, although he probably didn't feel it through his large hair. She looked apologetically at the two teenagers and tried to pull Lambo away.

"Let's just go up to my room, 'kay?" Tsuna pulled on Gokudera's elbow and started pulling him away.

"Oh, running away, are you?" Lambo taunted. "Fools! You can never defeat Lambo-san!"

"One day, I'll get you, dumb cow!" Gokudera yelled as he followed Tsuna up the stairs.

Once they were inside of his bedroom, he closed the door behind him and went to sit on his bed. Gokudera followed him and sat next to him, his hand landing over Tsuna's.

"That's the first part," Tsuna said, grasping Gokudera's long, pianist fingers. "But, then, I guess we were never really worried about that anyway."

Tsuna felt Gokudera's hand leave his and then felt those strong arms wrap around him.

"Hayato-kun…" Tsuna felt his face reddening. "We shouldn't. What if someone comes in?"

"I don't care," the Storm guardian said, nuzzling the brunette's back.

"But there are the kids… and my mom…" Tsuna trailed off as Gokudera placed his lips on the back of the Vongola's neck.

"Come on," Hayato said against his neck. "Your mom is going call us when your dad gets here."

"O-Okay," Tsuna turned around in Gokudera's arms and let Gokudera dot kisses on his neck.

"Its hard to kiss you through the scarf," Gokudera said, muffled through the fabric around his neck.

"Yeah…" Tsuna unwound the scarf around his neck and put it down next to him of the bed. Gokudera smiled and wrapped his arms tighter around the small brunette. Tsuna had turned around so that he was leaning against the bed frame and the young bomber dug his face into Tsuna's neck and nuzzled his nose into the crook of his jaw. He let his lips part and Tsuna felt his boyfriend's tongue trace his jaw line tenderly. Tsuna shuddered a little and he snaked his own arms around the silverette's neck.

Hayato ran his tongue slowly down Tsuna's neck until he found the pulse point. He felt the rhythm of the pulse against his lips and he felt that it was almost in time with his own as he started to suck on that one spot.

Tsuna sucked in his breath as he felt the sudden pressure and he felt his lips part slightly as his head rolled back in pleasure. Tsuna knew in the back of his head that this was kind of wrong and inappropriate, but he didn't care. He was going to have another hickey to match the first one, but he could just hide it later with the scarf. This felt too good to stop now.

Gokudera felt satisfied that he had a left a significant mark and lifted his head a little so he could kiss his brunette on the lips. Tsuna kissed him back and he slid down so that he wasn't leaning against the bed frame anymore, he was simply lying on the bed underneath Hayato.

Eventually they both needed to breath so they broke apart, their breathing coming fast and their faces both red.

"H-Hayato-kun… more…" Gokudera nodded, happy that his little boss had come around for him and his lips were curled into a smile when he kissed the brunette again. He let his tongue dance seductively over Tsuna's teeth until the Vongola Tenth opened the gap between his teeth and let the silverette in. Their tongues mingled for a while, mostly just tickling each other until one of them decided to get a little more serious. Neither of them could remember who had started pushing it further, but before either of them knew it, the two tongues were tackling each other against the bottom of the other's mouth and a small string of saliva was forming at the base of their mouths.

Gokudera scooted himself down on the bed so that he could roll over and Tsuna was lying on top of him. Tsuna's let his legs drift apart so he was straddling his boyfriend and their legs were grinding against each other.

Gokudera let his hands leave Tsuna's neck and let one of them travel to the small of his neck and the other dug its way underneath Tsuna's shirt, massaging the brunette's stomach seductively.

Tsuna felt the nervous yet excited feeling bloom in his stomach and he pulled Hayato even closer and kissing him even harder. He also felt something hard moving against his own groin.

"Tsuna!" the door to his room swung open and they both jumped, separating but still lying against each other. Iemitsu was standing in the doorway, the smile on his face disappearing in an instant; his smile was replaced with a look of disgust. That look also disappeared and was again replaced with a furious yet calm face. 

Tsuna and Hayato's faces both turned red and they finally let go of each other. Tsuna stared at his father in distress, a long line of drool connecting both of their mouths.

"D-Dad!"

"I'm sorry, it seems like I'm interrupting something," he said flatly, and then left, closing the door behind him with a gentle ferocity.

The two boys just sat there for a second, their faces still red and both of their eyes locked on the closed door, as if Tsuna's father was still standing in it.

Then Tsuna sat up quickly, grabbed a pillow from underneath Hayato, pressed it to his face, and then screamed into it.

"Tsuna… Tsuna, calm down!" Hayato grabbed the pillow from the brunette's grip and put it to the side. When he looked back up at Tsuna, he saw that the Sky guardian's face was streaked with tears.

"Hayato-kun!" Tsuna covered his face with his hands, his shoulders shaking violently with sobs. "Did you see the look on his face? He totally hates it! He hates it!"

Gokudera sighed and took his little brunette in his arms, hoisting him up and setting him down in his lap. He just sat there with the young Vongola, his arms wrapped around him and his chin resting gently on top of Tsuna's hair. He rubbed his boss's arms tenderly as he listened to him cry.

"Please stop," Hayato said when he couldn't take the sound of his lover in pain anymore. "Please, Tsuna, don't worry."

"How can I not worry?" Tsuna replied nasally, his voice changed due to his crying. He had turned around so that his head was resting on Hayato's chest, but he still wasn't looking at him. "He's probably going to make you leave! Or he's going to yell at you or tell me I can't ever see you again! Hayato-kun, I _want _to stay with you! I don't wanna be told I can't see you again! I… I-" Tsuna's voice trailed off as Hayato pulled the little Vongola's chin up and kissed him lightly on the lips.

When they finally separated, Hayato spoke. "I know, Tsuna. I don't want that either. I honestly want to stay with you forever and never have to leave this room. I know what your father just saw looked bad and he probably was… shocked…. And there is a chance he's going to make me leave. Hell, he might even try to hurt me-" Tsuna's breath caught and he started to sob again, Hayato winced and cursed himself mentally for distressing his boss. "And he might start yelling at you, or me, or both of us… You know, I'm not really sure what's going to happen. But I do know one thing. If he tells me to leave or starts to yell at you, I'm going to stay by your side."

"Hayato-kun," Tsuna said, looking up again at the Storm Guardian. "But what if he tells me I can't date you anymore."

"Then we'll just keep dating. And if he forces you to break up with me or ignore me, I will follow you everywhere you go and remind you how much I love you until you come back to me," Hayato squeezed the Vongola Decimo against his chest tightly. "I will never let anyone or anything take you away from me."

Tsuna was utterly flabbergasted and touched by what the silverette had said.

"Thank you, Hayato-kun," Tsuna said, wrapping his arms around Gokudera.

"You're welcome. And don't think for one second that I'm not serious. I will do everything in my power to make sure that you stay happy," Hayato said. He nuzzled Tsuna's head lovingly.

"Tsu-kun! Hayato-kun! Dinner's ready!" Nana's voice rang cheerily from below; she probably had no idea what had just happened just a floor above her.

"Well, let's go then," Hayato stood up and turned towards the door, but he stopped. Tsuna's arms were wrapped around his waist and his stomach was stretched from the bed to where his head rested on Gokudera's back. "Tsuna…"

"Hayato-kun, please… just in case you change your mind…" Tsuna squeezed his lover tightly around the waist.

"Not possible," Hayato took Tsuna's hands from around his waist as he turned around and brought them to his lips and kissed them. "I love you so much." He then kissed Tsuna lightly on the lips, not letting go of his hands. "Now let's go, okay?"

"I don't want to, but okay," Tsuna stood up and Hayato slid his hand in between Tsuna's fingers.

"I'm worried, too," Hayato said. "But it's okay because I know that we love each other, right?"

"Yeah, I do love you, Hayato," Tsuna whispered and it brought a smile to Gokudera's pale lips.

They sighed simultaneously and they set out down the stairs, which was way too short of a journey for both of them.

They arrived downstairs, hand-in-hand, where Bianchi (goggled) was waiting with the kids. Nana stepped out of the kitchen to announce that dinner would be ready in about five minutes. Iemitsu was nowhere to be found.

"Lambo-san wants to eat candy!" Lambo cried happily, running towards Tsuna, I-Pin following close behind.

"No, Lambo! Maman just made us dinner!" I-Pin shouted back at him. They were now running in a circle around Tsuna's legs.

"I-Pin is a kiss-up! A stupid, tail-headed kiss-up!" Lambo taunted.

I-Pin's face darkened and she glared at the young Bovino.

"Oi, Lambo! Don't be so mean to I-Pin!" Tsuna sighed. His voice sounded like it normally would if he was scolding Lambo, but Hayato heard that it had an extra edge to it.

"Don't tell me what to do, Dame-Tsuna," Lambo made a face at Tsuna and ran off. "Just try and catch me! You too, Ahou-dera!"

"That kid's cruisin' for a bruisin'," Gokudera said, clenching his fists angrily despite the situation they were in.

"Hayato, don't you have other things to be focused on?" Bianchi said smoothly, not looking up towards him. "You're in the presence of your boyfriend's family, are you not? Show some respect."

"And for what reason do you live here again, aneki?" Gokudera replied, annoyed.

"Do I have to smack some sense into that gray head of yours?" Bianchi said through gritted teeth.

"Hayato-kun, please stop," Tsuna said, standing in front of the seething silverette. "It's a battle you can't win."

"Well at least there's one smart person in the relationship," Bianchi said teasingly. "Funny, I just expected this to be an idiot couple." She winked at Tsuna through her goggles.

"Stop making fun of us!" Hayato yelled at his pink-haired sister.

"She's only joking, Hayato-kun, please calm down," Tsuna said patiently, trying to reason with his Storm guardian.

Suddenly, Tsuna felt a sharp tug at his neck and he tumbled backward, gagging. He fell against the arm of the couch behind him and pain shot through his head as his skull hit the hard wood structure of it.

"Tsuna!" Hayato yelled, worried as he watched his boyfriend fall helplessly and smack into the furniture.

"Are you alright?" Bianchi asked.

"Yeah," Tsuna sat up and rubbed his head. As his body shifted and leaned against the bottom of the chair, the wool scarf he was wearing slid from around his neck and into his lap.

"Turn around, son," the deep voice of Iemitsu split through the room like a knife. Tsuna turned around, not as much to comply with his father's request but more to just see what his intentions were. The tassels on the end were tangled in the man's fingers and the middle of the long scarf was grasped in his hands. He was glaring at his son, or rather, his son's neck.

"Get off of the floor," Iemitsu commanded. Tsuna did as he was told. Hayato watched nervously. Iemitsu bent down and inspected his son's bruised neck. His nose curled up in disgust and he turned to Hayato.

Hayato's heart started beating faster, but he swallowed and looked defiantly at the older man.

"Left your mark on him, huh?" he snarled. Hayato's face reddened tremendously and he looked away.

"Dad!" Tsuna shouted in disbelief.

Iemitsu ignored him and left the room.

The entire room was still for the longest time. Gokudera just stared at Tsuna as the brunette's face turned scarlet and his chocolate eyes shined with tears. Bianchi was silent too. There was really nothing anyone really could say.

Eventually, Gokudera walked nervously over and picked up Tsuna's orange wool scarf off of the ground and brushed it off. He then handed it to the smaller boy, who nodded lamely as a thank-you. The young Vongola tied the scarf around his neck, tighter than before and it occurred to Gokudera that he was probably tying it too tight without really realizing it, but he said nothing.

"Hayato," Bianchi finally spoke, the orange goggles upon her face not shielding the sadness that she conveyed from her to both of them.

Nana poked her head out of the kitchen and smiled at her guests, "Dinner's ready. Tsuna, please go tell your father, would you?"

"Actually, I'll go, Maman. This is the boys' special night after all," Bianchi said, crossing her arms and walking down the hall. She glanced back at the two boys briefly.

"I'm so sorry," Tsuna said, trembling a little after Bianchi had left. He showed the signs that he was going to start crying again but Gokudera bent down and hooked Tsuna's chin with his finger, quieting him.

"Don't worry," Gokudera smiled reassuringly even though he was about to cry himself. "You have to be brave," he said, not quite sure if he was addressing Tsuna or himself, so he took a deep breath and corrected himself, "_We_ have to be brave. Okay?"

Tsuna nodded his head sadly and they made their way to the kitchen.

Even though they both felt like shit about this entire ordeal, the spread that Nana had set out for them was incredible. When Nana had said she'd cook a feast she meant it and Tsuna often found himself wondering where they got the funding for their constant feasts.

"Oh, by the way, where's Reborn today?" Tsuna said, as if he gave two flying shits where his infant tutor was.

"He's with me," Iemitsu said testily as he walked into the kitchen, Bianchi following close behind with Reborn in her arms. She looked worried, but as always, the Arcobaleno looked mockingly amused.

Soon, they were all placed respectively around the table, Tsuna and Hayato sitting next to each other, Nana and Iemitsu sitting opposite them, Bianchi at the head of the table with Reborn next to her. Lambo and I-Pin had been sent to spend dinner at Yamamoto's. Tsuna had insisted on such, as he didn't want them around for the inappropriate/possibly explosive/definitely emotionally scarring discussion that would most likely take place at that dinner table.

The dinner was going quietly and Tsuna found himself foolishly (even he himself thought it so) believing that his dad might behave himself. But…

"So you two are dating, huh?" Iemitsu said, not even so much as glancing in the boy's direction.

Tsuna didn't say anything, hoping maybe that the matter would just drop into the silence.

"Are you going to answer me, boy, or just sit there like an idiot?" Iemitsu snapped irritably, still not looking up.

"Yes," Tsuna said, looking down. Hayato looked over at him with a sympathetic expression.

"Interesting," Iemitsu said in a tone that implied that he did _not_ find it 'interesting' at all. "For how long?"

"A month and a half," Tsuna murmured down at his still full dinner plate.

"Hmph," Iemitsu grunted. "And no one bothered to tell me?"

"Um… we were kind of keeping it a secret," Tsuna said, his face turning a little pink.

"Why?"

Tsuna finally looked up and stared at his father. To be honest, he didn't really know why. Most likely for the same reason that he didn't tell his own family or most of his friends. He wasn't ashamed, but… scared. He felt Gokudera's hand slide down in between his fingers and squeeze the brunette's small hand tightly.

"I said, '_why'_, son," Iemitsu growled.

"I don't know, sir, probably just to…"

"So you could hide your shameless relationship from the world?" Iemitsu snapped. Tsuna felt Gokudera flinch the second he did and swallowed.

"No, sir," Tsuna said, trying as hard as he could to keep his voice from cracking.

"I see," Iemitsu said. Another squeeze from Gokudera.

There was another painfully long silence as Iemitsu chewed his food. Even the ever-optimistic Nana sensed the tense atmosphere and looked over at her son worriedly.

"So, have you two done it yet?" Iemitsu said casually, as if he'd just asked how his son's day had been. This is when he finally decided to lift his head and look at his son.

Bianchi and Nana looked incredulously at the man and Reborn chuckled. Tsuna, who had reluctantly taken a sip from his drink sputtered in disbelief and he hacked. He and Hayato's pale complexions reddened in seconds.

"Dad!" Tsuna cried out in horror at his father's accusation. Not that they hadn't thought about it, but…. That wasn't nearly the point! To ask his own son something so… Hayato hadn't taken his hand away but Tsuna wished he had. It had started to tremble furiously. Actually, Tsuna couldn't tell if it was his own hand making Gokudera's shake or maybe it was the both of them at the same time.

"Iemitsu! What are you saying?" Nana yelled incredulously at her husband. Her brown eyes were wide with disgust.

"What are you all freaking out about?" Iemitsu said calmly. "I just asked our son a very simple question. A question that I want an answer to." He turned to Tsuna. The young Vongola's blood ran cold as he felt his father's gaze fall on him and Gokudera. He didn't have to look up to see that he was glaring his iciest glare at both of them. "So?"

Tsuna didn't answer, because he was afraid of what would happen if he opened his mouth.

"Well, son? Answer me. Have you had sex with that boy?" Iemitsu said, pointing his chopsticks at the silverette.

Tsuna muttered something unintelligibly under his breath.

"Huh? Answer me clearly, boy!" the older man barked.

"I said '_That boy_ has a name'," Tsuna said cautiously, although his voice was shaking. "His name is Hayato."

"And what of it?" Iemitsu spat. "That's not what I asked you."

"So what if we've done it before?" Tsuna exploded, the words coming from his mouth conflicting almost humorously with his tiny, frail stature. "What does it matter to you if I've had sex with him?"

The three others at the table looked uncomfortable, aside from Reborn, who was watching, amused.

"Because I want to know just how much of a faggot _that boy_ has turned you into!" Iemitsu shouted angrily at the Sky guardian.

Tsuna recoiled, as did Hayato, although he hadn't said a word yet. Tsuna's face was twisted into a look of pure disbelief and disgust. He hadn't really just said that, had he? Also, just like that, the bemused smile disappeared from Reborn's face.

"What?" Tsuna asked, his voice shaking even harder.

"I want to know how much of a filthy fag you've been turned into," Iemitsu said.

"I haven't been _turned_ into anything!" Tsuna yelled at him. "Hayato-kun has never done anything that turned me into…." He couldn't even say it. "All I know is that you've just been completely cruel to him." Hayato squeezed his hand again and he couldn't tell if it was a "thank-you" squeeze or a "thank-you but stop before this gets any worse" squeeze.

"And what about you?" Iemitsu turned to Hayato. He flinched under his icy glare. "You haven't said anything yet."

"He doesn't have to answer to you when you're talking to him like that," Tsuna said angrily.

"No, let him answer for himself," Iemitsu said, still looking at the silverette. Bianchi and Nana were just sitting back, watching the scene in disbelief.

"What are you, stupid? A coward?" Iemitsu taunted. The Storm guardian didn't look up, he just stayed silent. "What, the stupid, filthy, little fag boy can't speak for-"

"Iemitsu!" Nana cried.

But she needn't say any more. Tsuna's hand had disentangled itself from Hayato's hand and it streaked upwards and slapped his father in the face.

There was a heavy silence that followed the sound of skin cracking against skin but there was really nothing to insert there. Nana's mouth was hanging open and tears were swimming in her large eyes, eyes that usually were filled with warmth and kindness, but were now empty of anything even resembling such. They were just heavy and sad. Bianchi's hand had subconsciously traveled to her mouth, which she covered to try (without success) to hide the horrified expression that had now taken over her face. Reborn just looked down at the table, a dark shadow resting over his large eyes as his fedora tipped downwards with his gaze.

Meanwhile, Hayato's expression was just that of pure astonishment and horror. His stormy eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open. His already pale skin was now a sickly shade of white. _This is all my fault_, he thought in despair as he watched his little boss pull his hand back to his side.

"Tsuna…" he croaked out the young teen's name in a low mutter.

His boss surprised him by turning to face him with a look of bravery and satisfaction on his face.

"I will _not _allow _anyone_ to speak to you like that," Tsuna said solidly. "Even if it's my own father." He turned back to his father and glared icily at him with the eyes that could show so many different things. Strength, yet also understanding. Danger, yet also mercy.

"Apologize," Tsuna said coldly. His father was looking down at the table. He had stood up somewhere in the middle of his tirade and his fists were now clenched at his sides. It was obvious that Tsuna's strike had done little to hurt the stronger man, but the emotional damage had already been dealt. "Hayato-kun doesn't deserve any of what you just said to him. Apologize."

"Tsuna, you don't have to-"

There was a huge crash as Tsuna was flung backwards, bringing his chair with him, finally landing on the floor as he smacked into the wall behind him. There were also several other loud crashes, as plates and glasses were overturned, as Iemitsu was leaning over the table. His arm was extended and his fist was clenched tightly, so hard that his knuckles were white. But they were also hued a little pink, the exact shade of pink that was forming on Tsuna's cheek.

It took a second for it all to sink in. Hayato spent the next few seconds replaying the moment over and over in his mind as to try to decipher the situation in his head. His little brunette, his boss, _his_ Tsuna had just stood up to his father, commanding him over and over to apologize for what he'd said to Hayato. Then, he'd tried to intervene, but something happened next that….

Hayato's blood ran cold and tears gathered in his green eyes as he realized… Iemitsu had just punched his son. In the face. _Hard._

No one moved. The only thing that moved around in that room was the faces of the people in it.

Bianchi and Nana had stood up, as did Gokudera, all of them staring down at the fallen Sky guardian. Nana's face showed nothing but pure agony as she watched a little stream of blood start to trickle from her son's mouth. Bianchi looked from Iemitsu to Tsuna to Gokudera to Reborn and then back to Tsuna. Reborn's face was unreadable, but you didn't have to be a genius to tell that even he was disturbed. Tsuna just had a look of pure shock on his face.

"Tsuna!" Hayato dove from his chair and knelt next to his lover, gently cupping his shoulders and looking down miserably at him. Tsuna's face was still twisted in a look of shock, but a small flicker in Tsuna's eyes told that he recognized Gokudera's presence and that he was somewhat aware of his surroundings. "Are you alright?"

Tsuna didn't answer. But his father did.

"He better damn not be because if he is, I'll have to knock him down again," Iemitsu said, looking scornfully down at his son.

"What?" Hayato turned around, not believing his ears. "You'd hit him _again_?"

"If that's what it takes to knock some sense into him, then yes, I would," Iemitsu said coldly. "There's got to be something wrong with his head to want to be gay… and with _you_." Iemitsu said "you" like he was addressing a pile of dirt (if one were to address a pile of dirt.) Anyway, the words cut through Hayato like a knife. Iemitsu had just summarized what Hayato had been wondering for a long time.

Why had Tsuna picked him? He was so cute and innocent, so angelic. What had made him fall for such a loner? An outcast? It felt as if a prince has chosen a mere slave as his lover. But he was too worried about his prince to take pity on himself.

He reached up to the table, grabbed a napkin, and started to dab it under Tsuna's lips. He couldn't stand to look at the blood anymore.

"I go away on important business and I come back to find out that my son is _gay_ with a delinquent?" Iemitsu said, putting on quite a show of himself. "I don't want to have to deal with this!"

"Then don't!" Tsuna had found his voice again and was addressing his father. "Don't deal with this! Just accept it and leave us be!" Tsuna seemed as though he was ready to submit and was reduced to begging.

"No! I won't let you be more of a failure than you already are," Iemitsu said.

"What?" the two boys spoke at the same time.

Iemitsu's anger was flaring now and it was obvious that his rage was at its peak. He turned to Gokudera, " Its your fault that my loser of a son is now even more of an outcast than he was! But I guess it was bound to happen. You know what they say about birds of a feather."

"That's it!" Hayato snapped. He stood up and faced Iemitsu and he looked like he was ready to blow him off the planet. But Tsuna stopped him.

"No," Tsuna said, standing up crookedly. When he stumbled, Gokudera helped him to his feet and acted as a bolster. "Hayato-kun, I want you to go home."

"What? No!" Hayato said almost instantly.

"Yes! You shouldn't have to stay here and listen to this shit he's talking about you," Tsuna glared at his father briefly then turned back to the bomber. "Just go home, okay? I'll talk to you later." Tsuna smiled meekly but there was a pleading in his chestnut crystals that Hayato just couldn't ignore.

"Okay," Hayato said submissively.

"I'll walk you out, dear," Nana said and it was obvious that she was struggling to keep her voice from breaking.

"No, Mom, I'll do it," Tsuna said. He seemed to have regained his balance and walked with the silverette to the door.

Silently, Gokudera put on his jacket (it had started to pour by now and he had no umbrella.

His hand was on the doorknob when he turned to Tsuna. "Tsuna, I-" he meant to apologize. Or maybe he meant to comfort him. He couldn't remember. Everything comprehendible went out of his head as Tsuna wrapped his skinny arms around Gokudera's neck, pulled him close, and kissed him harder than he probably had ever in his entire life. He broke the kiss and moved his head slightly to whisper into Hayato's ear, "I'll call you later. I love you."

And with that, Gokudera left.

It was an hour after he got home before Gokudera got any sort of call. But it wasn't the one he'd been expecting.

"What?" he snapped, not even bothering to sound polite.

"Hello? Hayato-kun?" Sawada Nana's voice played miserably right back to him through the receiver.

"Oh, yes, hello, Okaa-sama," Hayato instantly perked up his voice, although it didn't do much.

"I'm so sorry about…" she trailed off. "But I just want you to know how much Tsuna cares about you. I know he probably tells you but I just wanted to make sure you knew."

This brought tears to Gokudera's eyes. Even when he felt hated, _he_ could always make it better.

"Thank you, Okaa-sama," Gokudera said.

"You're welcome. And just tell Tsuna that he can come home in the morning when this has all settled down," Nana said.

Hayato started. He looked around his dark apartment. He was alone at his home.

"Um, forgive me, Okaa-sama, but isn't Tsuna home with you?" Hayato's voice had started to shake ever so slightly.

"No, I could've sworn…" her voice had filled with panic as she turned and yelled up the stairs, "Bianchi-chan! Is Tsuna in his room?"

Hayato didn't need to hear the reply. His little prince had run away.

"Hayato-kun…" Nana's voice was quivering as it came through the phone. "He's not here. Oh, this is all my fault… I… I-"

"Okaa-sama, I'm going to go find him for you, okay?" Hayato said reassuringly, although he couldn't get his hands to stop shaking. He was so scared that his chest felt tight and his fingers almost vibrated as he pressed the End button on his phone and set it down.

_Where could he have gone? Where would he have gone? _Hayato put his hand over his mouth. _I need to find him. _

He stood up quickly and ran towards the door. He opened the door and was greeted by an unbelievable downpour. Thunder rolled above him as he stepped out into the hall leading to the downstairs of the apartment building.

Hayato's feet pounded against the rain-soaked pavement almost as hard as his own heart pounded in his chest. He wasn't sure exactly why he was scared though. He knew full well how capable Tsuna was and he could easily beat the shit out of anyone who posed a threat to him. But he was so fragile… It felt to Hayato that his boss would need him at a time like this.

Gokudera didn't even flinch when he realized that the feeling was mutual. He needed Tsuna as much as he hoped he would need him back. It wasn't surprising.

He slowed a little as he realized he had no idea where he was going or where to start looking. Not that he wouldn't turn the town upside down looking for Tsuna. He sucked in his breath as visions of his little boss filled his head; sitting alone, scared, ashamed, most likely wet and cold. He saw Tsuna sitting with his head between his knees, hot tears streaming down his fast. His heart ached for his little boss and longed for nothing more than to be able to find him. But where? Where?

He bowed his head angrily as he clenched his fists. He felt it building in his chest as his eyes started to fill with tears and he lifted his head and screamed the name of his beloved. "Tsunaaaaa!"

And as the last, long syllable echoed against the walls of the surrounding buildings, Hayato took off, once again allowing his feet to pound almost painfully against the pavement.

Hayato remembered how it'd been when he and Tsuna had first started dating. Tsuna had confessed to him and he was astounded. Needless to say, however, that that day, Tsuna had made him the happiest boy alive. But with all the thoughts of what could go right, came the thoughts of all the things that could go wrong. _What if I bore him? What if I'm too forward? What if he finds someone else? What if he leaves me?_

He'd always felt that when he was with Tsuna, that their connection was so strong that those fears seemed stupid. But there was always that lingering doubt. Gokudera always worried that whatever had attracted his prince to him would fade away and Tsuna would just leave, his interest in the silverette thus ended.

What would he do after that? How would he be able to survive without his boss by his side?

Gokudera had now realized that he'd run all over town, his mind swimming with all these thoughts and he'd neglected to search for Tsuna. He cursed himself a million times over in his mind and was about to turn around to run through the town all over again when he spotted the warehouse.

It was dank and gray, virtually unnoticeable, but the fact that Hayato realized that it was unnoticeable made it one hundred times more noticeable. It would blend in no matter what, but the fact that it was raining made the dark stone walls of the building almost seem like camouflage. So what was it that made Gokudera notice this building? Maybe it was the loud rattling the rain made against its metal roof. This building was obviously abandoned, the air about it just screamed, "I am empty." And Gokudera knew that for some reason, he needed to go inside this building. What it was once used for he did not care. Just for some reason, he needed to go inside this building.

The garage door of the large warehouse was cracked ever so slightly, but it was opened and that meant that someone had been inside it at some point in time. He placed his hand on the cold steel and used all of his strength to lift the heavy door upward. The sound of the metal grinding against metal as it opened was deafening and Gokudera flinched.

The lights were of course off, but still Gokudera found himself looking for some means of turning them on. Finding none, he gave up and decided to search around in the dark.

Not really thinking much of it, he called out Tsuna's name. "Tsuna?" His voice again echoed and there was no response. But for some reason, he felt that he needed to call out again. This time louder. "Tsuna!"

Thunder crashed as the name ended and he heard a small, almost inaudible whimper. Hayato jumped as he heard the sound and continued to investigate.

There was a considerably large pile of wooden crates stacked in the corner of the room and they all seemed to gather against the very corner of the wall. But there was in fact a little niche between the crates and the stone wall and this, after peeking between another small space between crates, is where Hayato found Tsuna.

He looked almost exactly as Hayato had imagined him. His entire image was just miserable and if Gokudera hadn't been completely in love with him, he would probably be thinking about how pathetic the Sky guardian looked. His head was hidden but one could easily imagine the expression on his pale face. It was most likely mirroring the expression on Hayato's face.

Even though he knew exactly how Tsuna felt, Gokudera had to admit that there was something beautiful about the brunette right now. His chocolate hair was hanging in his face, obviously damp from the rain, just as Hayato's was. The way his body was leaning against the wall of the warehouse. He looked like a fallen angel, broken and abandoned.

Hayato started to make his way around the large stack of crates and towards Tsuna. He was finally with him and he bent down next to the brunette. Either Tsuna couldn't hear Gokudera's approach over the roar of the rain hitting the metal roof or he was ignoring him because he didn't do so much as flinch. The Storm guardian hoped to God that it was the first one.

Hayato sat there for a second, not sure where to go from here. He finally settled on placing his hand on his boyfriend's shoulder, which he did hesitantly. As soon as his hand made contact Tsuna turned around abruptly and threw his arms around the silverette.

Hayato sighed and wrapped his long arms around the smaller boy. At least his boss didn't hate him.

Then Tsuna said something that was muffled against Hayato's shirt.

"What?"

Tsuna lifted his head and looked into Hayato's face with the eyes that conveyed the tales of shattered dreams.

"Break up with me, Hayato-kun," Tsuna said as another stream of tears started down his face.

Hayato's jaw dropped. He couldn't have possibly just said that, right? Hayato's entire world started to crumble before his very eyes.

"I can't stand to see you treated that way. So break up with me and find someone else whose family isn't so despicable," Tsuna said, placing his head back against his lover's chest miserably.

Gokudera sighed again. He sucked in his breath sharply and said, "Why won't you do it?"

Tsuna shook as he answered. "I can't."

"Well, I'm not going to do it," Hayato said. "This isn't the place to talk. Let's go home."

"You better mean your home. I'm not going back there," Tsuna said. Gokudera got up first, then he helped his boss up.

They were walking in silence, Hayato was in front, Tsuna following close behind.

"Hayato-kun?" Tsuna said after a while.

"What?" Hayato said gently.

"Break up with me."

"No."

"Please."

"No."

"But I-" Tsuna suddenly stopped. Hayato stopped too and turned back to look at the brunette. His fists were clenched at his sides and he looked determined. "Fine then, I'll break up with you."

Something inside of Hayato involuntarily snapped and he exploded.

"Do you really want to do that?" he yelled.

Tsuna looked taken aback but only for a second. The next second, his eyes started filling with tears again as he lower lip started quivering and he started to sob.

Hayato immediately regretted raising his voice to the only one he ever cared about.

"I'm sorry for shouting," Hayato said. "Please don't cry."

"No! I feel terrible. I brought Hayato-kun to my house and he was treated like shit and then I hid from him and now he's angry with me," Tsuna sobbed, bringing his wrists up to rub away the tears. "I'm a horrible person."

"No!" Hayato's response was almost instantaneous. "No, you're not a horrible person. You're wonderful and amazing and you're the best friend I've ever had. And I love you."

"You shouldn't love someone who causes you nothing but grief," Tsuna said weakly.

Hayato walked over to Tsuna and put his arms around him. "I can't help it. I've never met anyone in my entire life whose chosen who they fell in love with. I was just lucky enough that I happened to fall for you."

Tsuna sniffled and put his arms around Hayato's shoulders. The silverette released Tsuna from his embrace and wrapped his arms down underneath his waist. Then he lifted him up gently. He was holding Tsuna like a parent would hold their child.

"Hayato-kun…" Tsuna muttered, a hint of whining in his voice. But Gokudera shushed him and he started walking again.

He had gotten somewhat closer to his house when Tsuna spoke again. "Hayato-kun?"

"Hm?" Hayato couldn't see Tsuna's face, as he was leaning into his chest and his head was laying intimately on the bomber's shoulder.

"Why are you carrying me?" he said, although it was obvious that he didn't really care.

"Two reasons. One, if we stop again, you're gonna end up getting sick. Secondly, I want to be close to you."

Tsuna didn't talk again for the rest of the walk home and just rested his head on Gokudera's shoulder.

"Here, I brought you a towel," Hayato said, tossing the towel to Tsuna and then tying his silver hair into an elastic band.

"Thank you," Tsuna said meekly, looking down as he shook the water from his brown locks.

He was shirtless, as he had been out in the rain for sometime and he was utterly soaked. He'd changed pants and had borrowed a pair of solid pajama pants from Hayato (the pair had been the most generic, as the rest had been dotted with skulls and other visions of darkness and despair.)

Gokudera was also shirtless and was wearing a different pair of pajama pants. He had taken out his contacts and his round spectacles were now perched on his nose.

Gokudera watched his boyfriend sadly; the brunette had stopped drying his hair and had let the towel rest on his head and he was looking down at the floor pitifully.

Hayato walked quietly over to him. "Can I sit next to you, Tsuna?" he said cautiously, careful not to frighten his lover.

"Its your house," Tsuna said coldly and he shrugged. Hayato's heart sank. His boss was really upset, but that much was obvious.

"Tsuna, I'm not going to be able to handle it if you're mad at me, so please tell me what I should do so that can change," Hayato said, smiling weakly in the brunette's direction.

Tsuna didn't say anything. Hayato sighed a little, which made Tsuna jump a little. "Tsuna, please, say something."

Tsuna didn't really say anything and he looked down at his hands, which were twiddling idly in his lap and Tsuna hadn't really noticed until then.

"Tsuna…" there was a pleading in Gokudera's voice that Tsuna just couldn't ignore any longer.

"You're the one who should be mad," Tsuna muttered quietly, more in the direction of his hands than towards his boyfriend.

"What?"

"I said that you should be the one who's mad," Tsuna spoke a little louder and with a little more force than he'd meant to. He even subconsciously added a shake of his head for effect.

Hayato's silver eyebrows rose up in bewilderment, but he didn't say anything, just continued to watch the little brunette.

"I worried endlessly about you meeting my father and as a result I never stopped bitching about it. I made you nervous when I told you everything. I made you scared because you thought I was going to leave you. I brought you to my house and my father treated you like shit and I had to make you leave. And I made you worry when I was hiding in the warehouse," Tsuna couldn't seem to get all of the words out fast enough and he said all of that in one breath. Tears were falling down his pale face again as he caught his breath and continued. "If anything, you should want to break up with me. I'm a horrible boyfriend and a bad friend in general and you always put up with me when you don't have to."

Hayato was stunned. He hadn't thought any of this at all. But if he interrupted the young Vongola now, he'd only protest and try to go on anyway, so he again stayed silent."

"I love you, Hayato-kun," Tsuna said, bringing his hand up to his eye and wiping the tears away. "So much. You're the best friend I ever had and you've done nothing but love me since the day we started going out and this is how I repay you. By making you worried and sad and angry and nervous and…. That's why I want you to break up with me. You don't deserve to be worried or sad all the time. I don't deserve you," Tsuna had started sobbing and shivering yet again. "It makes me sad when you're upset and since I'm the one that's making you upset, that makes me even more sad because I love you so much."

Tsuna suddenly noticed that he was babbling and shut up quickly, but that didn't stop the shaking and the sobbing. He was so scared that he couldn't even look up at the Storm guardian. The silence was deafening and Tsuna just couldn't stand it anymore so he stole a glance up at his lover.

"H-Hayato-kun? Please say something," Tsuna was now the one begging.

But there was still silence as Hayato grabbed Tsuna's wrist and yanked him over and onto his lap. His arms were suddenly wrapped tightly around Tsuna and his lips were pressed hard against the small brunette's.

"Hayato-kun," Tsuna turned his head away from the silverette, causing a look of pain to shadow across the taller boy's face. "Please, I don't want to see you worried anymore."

Hayato kissed him again and then spoke gently against the Vongola's lips, "I'm not worried. I just love you so much that its doubtful that I'll ever break up with you."

"Hayato-kun," tears were gathering again and Tsuna didn't know how to stop them anymore.

Hayato backed away but only a few inches. He wanted to stay as close as possible to his Tenth. "I'll admit I was worried at first when it came to your father. Hell, I'm still a little worried right now." Tsuna winced and Gokudera gave him a tight squeeze of assurance and the brunette allowed him to continue. "But that doesn't matter now. I don't want you to ever say anything like that again. Don't you ever doubt for a second how much I love you. You mean more to me than anyone in the entire world and I'm not about to give that up. But…"

Hayato couldn't seem to get the words out of his mouth. He took a deep breath and said the words he'd been dreading. "But if you don't love me anymore, I will break up with you. I'll break up with you only if you can't stand the sight of me and the sound of my voice makes you sick. Only if you can't bear to be in my arms a second longer. But please… don't say that."

The Storm guardian hooked a long finger underneath his boss's chin and tilted it upward so that chestnut crystals were staring into aquamarine jewels. "Okay?"

Hayato didn't really want an answer. He was too scared that his boyfriend would reject him, push him away. But Tsuna didn't do that. Quite the opposite actually.

Tsuna sprung forward, wrapping his arms around Hayato's neck as they tumbled backwards against the bed.

"I would never say _anything _like that, Hayato-kun! I love you so much!" Tsuna cried into his boyfriend's chest. He lifted his head and laid a kiss on his boyfriend's cheek tenderly.

Hayato didn't expect that at all, but he didn't waste any time responding. He wrapped his arms around the smaller boy and squeezed him extremely tight.

"I love you too!" he kissed his boss chastely on the mouth and caressed his cheek lovingly.

They just laid there in each other's arms for a while, enjoying the warmth of each other until Tsuna finally spoke.

"Hayato-kun…?" Tsuna spoke hesitantly to his lover, not lifting his head from where it lay in the bomber's chest.

"Hm?" Gokudera's chin was resting lightly on the top of Tsuna's head, cushioned by the pillow of chocolate hair.

"Can you promise me that something like this will never happen again?"

Hayato was silent for a long time and for a second Tsuna thought that he would fall asleep before he got an answer but an answer he did get.

"I wish I could. I wish I could tell you that so bad, Tsuna, but I don't want to lie to you. I have absolutely no way of knowing whether or not this will happen again," Hayato said, placing a ringed hand on top of Tsuna's head.

Tsuna felt his eyes fill with tears again. "W-Why?"

"I don't know," Hayato said. "I don't know why some people don't accept the way we are. I don't know why people don't realize how unfair it is that they hate me for loving you. Its unfair because its so hard for me not to love you. In fact, I think at this point that it would be impossible for me to go back to wherever I was before I loved you. I don't even want to think about that now." At this point he had started stroking Tsuna's hair tenderly. "All I know is that even though some people hate the way we are, that's not going to change how I feel about you. I love you so much and I'm never going to let anyone hurt you like that ever again."

"But you just said that-" Tsuna whimpered slightly as he dug his head even further into Hayato's chest.

"I know what I said. But just because people are going to be that way doesn't mean that I'm not going to protect you from it," Hayato said, lifting Tsuna's head so that they were looking into each other's eyes again. "I will never let anyone hurt you."

They were silent for a time again until Hayato said something. "Tsuna, after I left…" He didn't say anything for a while.

"Hayato-kun?"

"Did he hit you anymore?" Hayato said, looking seriously at his boyfriend.

"…Yeah," Tsuna said. He felt Hayato flinch so he added quickly, "But only a little bit. Like one hit and that was it."

Hayato shook as he lowered his arms to wrap them around Tsuna's waist.

"Where did he hit you?" Hayato whispered almost inaudibly into Tsuna's hair.

"What?"

"Where did your dad hit you?" Hayato lifted his head and he said it forcefully.

"Um… I-I don't think… I don't remember," Tsuna stuttered. It was obvious that he remembered but he didn't want to tell him. He couldn't. No matter how many times they promised each other it would still hurt to hear it.

"Tsuna…" His grasp around the brunette tightened.

"Alright… he just smacked me… a couple times in the face. But I'm fine, really, I promise," Tsuna said. Tsuna plastered a smile on his face and said, "I mean, come on, its no big deal. I've been smacked around a ton ever since I met Reborn, so a little tap from my dad was nothing." He laughed, although nothing he had said in the last few minutes was anything even resembling funny.

But something sudden and wet tapped the side of his cheek and his laughter stopped immediately.

Tsuna lifted his head and he found himself tapped in the face with another drop. He also found that the silverette that was holding him so tightly was crying. He was trembling as tears streaked like comets down his pale face and his teeth were grinding together. His cheeks and the underneath of his eyes were red.

"Hayato-kun, what…?" Tsuna's breath caught in his throat. "What's wrong, Hayato-kun? Please don't cry! D-Did I—"

"No…" Hayato sniffled and tried to compose himself. He rubbed his eyes before continuing. "I just can't stand the fact that I allowed someone to hurt you and it was completely my fault."

"W-What?" Tsuna blushed, realizing what a mistake he'd made. "Wait, that has nothing to do with you… I, um, that is to say, I…"

"Don't try to change what happened. I know that he hit you, so please, don't lie to me and act that it didn't happen."

"Hayato-kun, its fine, really!" Tsuna said. "I'm not pretending it didn't happen, I'm just telling you not to worry about it. Its behind us now. And I don't care that I got hit. All I care about is that I love you and everything is okay now."

Tsuna intertwined his arms through Gokudera's so that his hands rested tightly on his lover's shoulders.

Hayato lifted his own arms and cupped Tsuna's face and looked down at his boss. He looked into Tsuna's brown eyes like he'd never seen anyone more beautiful in his entire life. Then, he lifted his boyfriend's head lightly and kissed him tenderly on the forehead.

A small infant stood in a hotel room on the east side of Namimori, with a young man and an older man, who was weeping openly.

"You're so stupid, Iemitsu," Reborn scoffed, although he smiled to himself, amused.

"Reborn-dono, I don't understand why Master is crying!" Basil said, worry clouding his blue eyes.

"I just wanted to make sure that m-my boy was going to have a he-healthy relationship, but it seems I w-went too far," Iemitsu said, laying his head in his hands.

"So you hit him and called both him and Gokudera 'fags'?"

"Master! How could you do that to Sawada-dono and Gokudera-dono?" Basil cried in disbelief.

"It seems that it all worked out just fine though. They seem to be even closer now than ever," Reborn said, crossing his arms, satisfied.


	3. Chapter 3

That night… It was definitely a night to remember. But in no way was it a night that either of them wanted to ever think about ever again.

Neither of them could really say that they got any real sleep that night. Though neither of them would really admit it to the other, the second either of them went into a deep sleep, something would always wake them up again.

For Gokudera, it was the scene of Iemitsu hitting his beloved in the face. That's the only thing he saw. The fist connecting with his face, the small boy flying backwards into the wall, the blood trickling from his pink lips. Sometimes, the dream didn't play out, it just stopped at the second when Iemitsu's fist hit Tsuna's cherubic face and that moment was for some reason frozen in time, never moving. He could only watch helplessly as Tsuna's father hit him. The only thing Gokudera saw was the look of pain of Tsuna's face. It was stuck there and the gut-wrenching feeling inside of him tore at his insides as he only saw the look of agony of his lover's face.

For Tsuna, it wasn't so much as a moment so much as phrases. The entire dreamscape was pitch black, but his father's voice still echoed mockingly throughout the dark sanctum.

"How much of a filthy fag this boy has turned you into."

"Have you had sex with this boy?"

"Can't the filthy, stupid, little fag boy speak for himself?"

"I come home to find my son gay… with a delinquent!"

"Now you've turned my loser of a son into even more of an outcast. … You know what they say about birds of a feather."

As Tsuna listened to his own father's voice verbally abuse the one he loved over and over again, a very subtle image started to materialize in front of him. It started out as nothing but a faint, gray glow, but as time went on and more and more verbal slanders were said, the image finally cleared up. It was a huge close-up of Hayato's weeping face. Of the miserable expression he'd worn for most of the night. Of the terrified look on his face when he heard that Tsuna had wanted him to break up with him. Never once did those faces falter. He never saw anything except sorrow on the face of his boyfriend.

Each time one of the boys had a nightmare, they awoke with a jolt, in a cold sweat. They had realized after about their first dreams respectively that they were lying next to their significant other and tried as hard as they could to not wake them.

Somewhere around two o' clock, Tsuna awoke again (awakened by around his fifth nightmare) and he had forgotten where he was. He hadn't been sure why, but he felt terribly sad, his face heavy as if he'd been crying, his throat dry, his face aching. He soon realized that he was laying in the arms of his best friend, his boyfriend, his lover, and he was wondering what could be making him so sad in this situation. But then it hit him again.

He didn't completely figure it out on his own. Gokudera had filled in some of the blanks. Even though the only source of light in the room was the silvery streaks of compromised moonlight through the window (it was still raining), Tsuna could still see the aftermath of the night prior's disaster etched into his pale face. Even if only illuminated by the little moonlight, Tsuna could still see the red circles surrounding his lover's eyes. His favorite eyes. He could still see the frown lines surrounding his mouth. His favorite mouth. He could still see the extreme sadness forever drawn into Hayato's face. His favorite face.

When Tsuna soon realized why all of these things were ruining his favorite person's beautiful face when last night's occurrences returned to him and hit him like a train.

Tsuna just stared into space unbelievingly for a while but before he knew it, hot tears were streaking down his face again. They started out silent, but before long they had progressed into sobs, violent ones. Tsuna tried to desperately to calm himself down before Gokudera could feel the bed shaking and wake up. Somehow he must have succeeded because Hayato didn't wake up.

When Tsuna finally calmed down, he just laid there and listened to the silverette's breathing until just knowing the fact that the bomber was still there lulled him back to sleep.

It was morning now and both boys were still asleep. No light came in through the window this morning, as it was still raining. It wasn't nearly as hard as it had been the night before, but it was hardly what one would call a drizzle.

It was around eight before either of them stirred awake, groggy, heavy, and miserable. Tsuna was the first one awake again and instead of waking up the Storm guardian, he just laid there.

He was done. He was sick and tired of worrying. He really wanted to end it with Hayato. So badly. But not for the reasons you'd expect. He wanted Hayato to never be so miserably again. He never again wanted to see him make the faces that he just recently haunted him dreams. But at the same time, Tsuna knew full well that he would rather stab himself with a rusty knife then to not have the silverette by his side. He knew it was selfish, but he couldn't help it. He just loved him so much.

Tsuna tightened his grasp around the taller teen and nuzzled into him more. Gokudera unconsciously tightened his grip around Tsuna in response. Tsuna inhaled the scent of his boyfriend. He smelled like soap and mint, but his aroma was also laced with the musky smell of cigarettes, even though he had started to cut down considerably ever since they had started going out. Quietly, Tsuna started confessing,

"I don't want us to be together anymore. I want you to be free from this torture. I want you to be able to forget about me and find someone who deserves you. I want you to find someone who will never make you make those faces again and forget about me forever. But I'm so selfish that I can't even let you have that satisfaction.

"I want to let you go so you can never be this sad again. You deserve it. But I can't possibly let you go. I love you too much. I'm in too deep."

"Me, too," a strong, deep voice chimed in from above. Tsuna started and looked up into the smiling face of his Storm guardian. Tsuna blushed deeply as he realized that Hayato had heard everything he just said. Then he also realized that that wasn't really a bad thing.

Nonetheless, it was embarrassing for someone to say and even more humiliating for someone to hear, so Tsuna pouted and lowered his face into Hayato's chest. The bomber smiled and hugged him closer to his chest.

Hayato himself was really in no mood to be smiling, but he couldn't help it if Tsuna had the most amazing talent ever: to make him smile when all he wanted to do was cry. But Gokudera had made a promise to himself and also to Tsuna, although the latter was unaware of it. He had promised that he would never let Tsuna see him cry ever again. He would never be so careless as to let the one he loved the most see him as anything other than happy. He didn't deserve to see a face like that.

"Um… Hayato-kun?" Tsuna's angelic voice cut through Hayato's thoughts and the silverette looked over at the younger boy.

"Tsuna?"

"I…" Tsuna trailed off. He had absolutely no idea what he had really wanted to say. As a matter of fact, he was pretty sure that he had never really had anything to say to his Italian lover. "I… I don't really know. I just… wanted to hear your voice."

Gokudera gave them distance between their chests for a second and looked down into the brunette's face. Tsuna looked back into the Storm guardian's face awkwardly, wondering if he had said something completely stupid.

However he quickly pushed that thought out of his mind as Gokudera dove forward, resting his head on Tsuna's shoulder, hooked his arms through Tsuna's, and pulled him even closer than before.

"Hayato-kun?" Tsuna said questioningly, although he didn't hesitate to wrap his own arms around Hayato and pull him closer as well.

"You want to hear my voice?" Hayato asked. Tsuna nodded into thin shoulder and Hayato smiled. "I love you."

Tsuna blushed. He'd said it to Hayato a lot as of late and Hayato had said it to him, but there was always something enchanting about hearing it again. It was like he was hearing it for the first time.

"I love you, too," Tsuna said.

"No, you don't understand. I am completely, totally, and hopelessly in love with you," Gokudera said, smiling. "I don't ever want to let you go. I just want to stay here with you, forever."

Tsuna gasped. He was so touched by Hayato's words. He had never met someone who could make him feel this way before. That could make him feel so loved, so cherished, so _complete_. Tears started swimming in his eyes as he tried to find words that would even come close to matching that declaration.

"I know how you feel," Tsuna said. "I feel the same way."

"Your dad's not gonna like that," Gokudera said and instantly regretted it. How stupid could he be to really bring up his dad _now?_ After he'd put both of them through so much pain?

Tsuna was silent for a while and Hayato wondered if he'd gone too far. He started to separate from Tsuna when he felt the Sky guardian pull him close, nuzzle his head farther into his chest, and squeeze his shirt tightly with his hands.

"Screw my father," Tsuna growled.

Gokudera's heart leapt… but at the same time, it broke. He was so elated that Tsuna would really choose him over his own father. His own flesh and blood. But at the same time, he felt incredibly guilty. Who was he to come between his beloved boss and his family? Who was he to suddenly rip that apart?

"Tsuna, wait," Gokudera said hesitantly and pushed Tsuna away… but only the slightest bit and looking at him. Tsuna, however, didn't look up. "I can't let you ruin your relationship with your father. Your family should always come first."

"I'm not getting rid of my family completely. I still have my mom. I just never want to speak to that man ever again," Tsuna said, still not looking up. "She accepted that I love you. In fact, she was happy for me! She was ecstatic because she'd never seen me so happy. And I'd have to agree with her. I don't think there's ever been a time where I've been this happy all the time."

Gokudera just watched as Tsuna said anything and everything that he had ever wanted to hear.

"But he… _he_ just couldn't be happy for us. He just couldn't leave us alone. Its not of his business who I fall in love with and its not of his business what I do with the one I love."

Gokudera inhaled sharply. That topic was back again. He wasn't exactly sure why, but Iemitsu's asking if they had ever had sex had an incredible impact on Tsuna.

"Why does that bother you so much?" Hayato asked cautiously, knowing that he was treading on dangerous grounds.

"Because even if we had had sex, there was nothing he could do about it then. So what if we had? What would he have done? Beaten me harder? That wouldn't change the fact that we'd done it," Gokudera realized that Tsuna was right, but as the topic of Tsuna being beaten came up again, the bomber cringed.

There was an uncomfortable silence that followed Tsuna's last statement. Even before he finished his sentence, the last few syllables resonated through the air.

There was more silence and Gokudera had assumed that the conversation had ended. But then Tsuna said,

"I'm sorry," and suddenly, he was back to his angelic, innocent self again. Suddenly, he was fragile again. He was… vulnerable, again.

"Its okay," Gokudera said, holding him close. "I love you."

"I… love you, t-too," Gokudera started as he realized that Tsuna had begun to cry again.

Gokudera cringed again. Seeing his beloved Tsuna in pain was the most excruciating thing ever. But at the same time, Gokudera was ashamed to say that feeling the littler boy shake against his own body, even though he was shaking with sobs, turned him on. He could feel Tsuna gripping his shirt in tight, balled fists and he felt the brunette's legs almost curled around his own. Tsuna felt needy and Gokudera could relate. He wanted to be as close to Tsuna as humanely possible and then even closer still. He wanted for Tsuna to hold him like that all the time. He just wanted to stay in this position forever.

But the fact that someone was trying to stop that… that someone was trying to prevent them from being able to hold each other, to kiss each other, to be with each other, nearly broke Hayato's half in two. He sighed heavily and hugged the brunette closer.

Suddenly, Tsuna stopped shaking. He had ceased his sobbing so abruptly that he had made Gokudera jump in surprise and look down at the brunette. Tsuna looked up at him in return and before Gokudera could even ask what was wrong, Tsuna had lifted his head and pecked the silverette on the lips.

The sign of affection didn't shock Gokudera, but he was indeed surprised by the sudden change in attitude. But he soon forgot his surprise as Tsuna kissed him again, this time holding their lips together for a while. Gokudera blinked, confused. Tsuna usually didn't kiss him like this. Sure, he had been the one to initiate their making out before, but these kisses had a different feel behind them. They were chaste, they were warm, but most of all, they were needy. It suddenly occurred to Hayato that Tsuna _needed_ him right now. He also realized that he needed him as well.

Gokudera finally reacted Tsuna's advances and returned the kiss, pushing Tsuna's head back slightly and leaning his head against the pillow to enhance the electricity that the kiss brought them.

Tsuna sighed contentedly into the kiss, not exactly ecstatic yet, but at the very least happy that the taller of the two boys had responded to his kiss. He honestly hadn't expected him too. Usually, Hayato was more than happy to kiss him, but it just seemed like now, he just seemed like he'd want to push him away.

But Gokudera obviously wasn't going to push him away. Quite the opposite, actually. He shifted quickly so that he was lying on his back and the littler Mafioso was lying on his stomach.

Gokudera's lips were still pressed against Tsuna's; so hard that the brunette's cherry lips would definitely be swollen later. As they tried to become ever closer and make the kiss feel ever more electrifying than it already was, they soon ran out of space between their mouths and their teeth were starting to meet, clacking together every time they moved even in the slightest.

Hayato suddenly broke the kiss, but only for a second. He slid his tongue lazily over Tsuna's bottom lip, begging for access in between his teeth. Tsuna granted it eagerly, moaning in pleasure as their tongues touched for the first time, sending sparks through both boys' bodies. The two young mafiosos battled for dominance, tickling each other's tongues, dragging their tongues against the sides of each others' mouths, there was just no limit to what they could do.

Hayato soon realized that he wasn't even really thinking about what he was doing, he was just enjoying the sheer, unadulterated pleasure that came from being so close to his boss.

Tsuna's hands, which had just been placed lazily on Gokudera's chest, slowly made their way up, inching their way towards his neck. The slow process of them moving sent shivers up the silverette's spine and he felt the silver hairs of the back of his neck stand up as Tsuna tickled the sides of his neck seductively until they settled, wrapped tightly and protectively around Gokudera's neck.

Gokudera finally broke the violent kiss, noticing that Tsuna's lips were in fact swollen and a hell of a lot more red than usual. Tsuna made a noise of disapproval at the sudden distance and tried to pull the silverette back down towards his lips, but Gokudera shook his head, still panting hard. He then suddenly started kissing Tsuna all over his face, but not before noticing how goddamn _gorgeous_ his boyfriend looked right now. The low light created by the dark curtains accompanied with the fact that there was no sunlight right now left a shadow across Tsuna's face that was simply angelic. The light shined off of his cherubic, peach skin and even bounced off of his beautiful chocolate eyes, not that they needed help being bright and beautiful. They easily light up the room, or at least Gokudera's field of vision, even with the sad glow behind it.

Gokudera hated that glow. Well, not so much the glow as much as the sadness that accompanied it. He hated that glow even if it didn't deteriorate the young Vongola's beauty in the least. He hated it because he knew that on the inside, despite the stunning exterior, Tsuna was aching inside. And Gokudera was determined to _kill_ that ache.

Gokudera trailed butterfly kisses all over the boy's face until he stopped at the forehead, then leaving a long, wet trail with his tongue until he reached that beautiful peach neck. Either the hickies that were there before had healed, or Gokudera could give two shits about hickies left before. He only cared about what was happening now.

He circled his tongue around the pulse point for a few seconds before finally covering it entirely with his mouth and sucking on it. He moved his hands up from where they were resting and entwined them in Tsuna's cocoa-colored locks. Tsuna moaned quietly and threw his head back, fortunately in no way obstructing Gokudera's access to his creamy skin.

When Hayato was sure, that he had thoroughly left his mark on Tsuna, he decided to move a little upwards: to Tsuna's Adam's apple. As soon as the Storm's hot lips circled the Vongola's throat, said boy beneath him gasped quite audibly, followed quickly by a shudder and a moan.

Gokudera could feel the butterflies in his stomach that he got whenever he and Tsuna got intimate, but this felt different. It felt not only needy, but _necessary_. Like if they weren't together at this moment, they might not be able to go on.

Gokudera was done sucking on the Adam's apple now, sure that he had left a considerable bruise that would dictate who Tsuna belonged to. He decided to move upwards again and give Tsuna's already swollen, pink lips some attention. He kissed Tsuna's lips rather violently, forcing his tongue into his mouth when Tsuna moaned.

Hayato was just inching his hand across Tsuna's exposed stomach when he heard a loud tone play from his nightstand. They were both startled out of their bliss by the loud dinging that was coming from Tsuna's cell phone. Gokudera just sat there for a moment, staring at the cell phone, somehow not angry, just… inconvenienced. He turned back to Tsuna to see a completely pissed-looking, little brunette, glaring at his phone. Then, Tsuna reached around Gokudera's neck and pulled him up to meet his lips again.

Gokudera briefly considered forgetting completely about Tsuna's cell phone and keep making out with his boyfriend, but he knew what had to be done.

He placed his hands on his lover's shoulders and pushed him up off of him, while being careful not to lose any of their closeness, their lips making an endearing, smacking sound as they separated.

"No, Tsuna. You have to check it. Its probably your mom," Gokudera said firmly, even though he'd love nothing more than to kiss his brunette angel until they melted into each other's arms.

"Who cares?" Tsuna mumbled, not diving in for another kiss, but wanting to.

"Because I never told your mom that I found you yesterday. She's probably worried sick. I know I was," Gokudera said, still holding onto the Sky's arms.

"Who cares?" Tsuna said again.

"Tsuna, your mom isn't the one to blame here. She-"

"Of course she's the one to blame!" Tsuna said rather loudly. "It was her stupid idea to have this freakin' 'dinner party' and look where it got us!"

"You don't think she realizes that?" Gokudera said calmly, keeping his composure so as to calm Tsuna down. "She actually said that on the phone last night."

"S-She did?" Tsuna sniffled and Gokudera saw that Tsuna was crying. Sooner or later they were both going to cry themselves dry.

"Yeah. But she only wanted to have me over because she saw how happy you were. Or at the very least noticed a slight change in attitude. You mean the world to her and she just wanted to find someone with an identical point of view." Gokudera smiled when Tsuna looked up at him, his mouth parted in a disbelieving gasp. He kissed the younger boy's forehead gently and Tsuna finally gave in.

"Fine, I'll check my phone, okay?" Gokudera nodded and let Tsuna get up off of him.

He watched carefully as Tsuna flipped his orange cell phone open, causing the little tuna phone charm to jingle as it shook. The light that illuminated on the external screen told Gokudera that Tsuna had had 22 missed calls and 19 text messages. Gokudera mentally cursed himself for forgetting to tell Nana that her son was safe.

He watched the conflicting emotions that spread across Tsuna's angelic face as he read the text messages. His expressions changed from angry to worried and settled on a look of sadness that was only complimented by the tears that had started to form at the bottom of Tsuna's mahogany gems.

"Call her," Gokudera said. "I'll be here waiting for you." He smiled even though he didn't really feel all that happy.

Tsuna looked up at his silver-haired boyfriend silently, trying to find something to say but before he knew it his face scrunched up and he was crying again. Gokudera pulled him toward him and held him close. Tsuna's tiny body shook with sobs for a few moments until they finally subsided and he was just leaning longingly against Gokudera's.

There was no sound for a whole ten minutes except for the sound of each of the boys' breathing. Finally, Tsuna straightened up, although his head was still resting on Gokudera's chest.

"Fine, I'll call," he said and Gokudera smirked when he realized that Tsuna was probably pouting.

Tsuna sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed, only looking briefly at his boyfriend before leaving the room with his cell phone. The second the little brunette left his room it felt like the entire area dropped ten degrees. The entire room just felt so empty that at the same time it was suffocating. God, this was frustrating. To love someone so much that being away from them for a few seconds hurt this much? But then he remembered the brunette's gentler smiling face. His auburn hair that glistened in the sun. The beautiful, chocolate crystals that outshone the sun on the brightest summer day. His angelic voice and even more heavenly laugh. That's when Hayato knew that this pain… it was worth it.

Of course, that didn't mean that this; all the stuff that was going on right now, still didn't hurt. This was definitely still painful. This would definitely take some healing. But they would heal together.

Gokudera jumped as he suddenly heard Tsuna yelling from the other room. His enraged voice shouted into the receiver and Gokudera could tell that it was definitely about his father. He'd rather not ignore the brunette if at all possible, but he knew that he wouldn't want to hear whatever was being said and he was pretty sure Tsuna wouldn't exactly want him to be listening in, so he found his headphones on his nightstand and plugged in. An angry, screamo song shrieked at him through the speakers and he let himself sink into his bed and into the music. Or at least tried to.

He tried to listen to the music and let his mind wander away from Tsuna, but no matter what he couldn't stop thinking about him. He was only in the other room but at the same time he was so far away. Not only was he far away, but he was in pain. He was angry and sad and, for some reason, alone. Gokudera growled to himself. Why had he left him alone?

Hayato threw his headphones off, not even bothering to pause the song he was listening to and walked from his room. He sort of regretted it when he immediately heard Tsuna yelling angrily into his phone.

"No, Mom, I'm done with this, okay? I'm not going to call and talk to him?" There was a short pause during which his mother said something on the other end. "Because he called us dirty fags, Mom! Its obvious he doesn't want anything to do with me, so I'm just returning the favor. I don't frickin' care if that's wrong, Mom! The things he did, the things he _said_, were wrong!"

Gokudera heart wrenched. This entire thing was tearing this family apart.

Gokudera stopped in the doorway to the living room and just stayed there for a while and watched.

God, even when trembling with unbridled rage, Tsuna was still beautiful. His cheeks were flushed red with anger and his chocolate eyes were narrowed but even so, he was still gorgeous. Not much light got through the window because of the rain, but the little that did manage to weasel its way in hit him from just the right angle, not that there could be a wrong angle when it came to Tsuna. The way the light hit his exposed back and chest, his cheeks, his entire body, made him look like an angel. Gokudera was leaning against the doorframe, smiling lovingly at his little Sky guardian when suddenly Tsuna exploded.

"I'll tell you freakin' why I won't try to reason with him! Because he made me scared to tell him that I was gay. What kind of father makes me question whether or not to let him know what's going on in my life? When you found out, you were excited for both Hayato-kun and me! You were excited because I was happy! But my own father couldn't freakin' do that?" Tsuna stopped for a half-second to catch his breath before continuing. "I want to include my father in my life! I mean, why not? I thought he was dead for more than half my life! But, of course, I couldn't have that! I had to deal with a father who came home after a trip and verbally abused my boyfriend! Like _hell_ I'll reason with him!"

There was another short pause while Nana talked on the other end. Gokudera could hear her pleading on the other line, saying something incoherent to the Storm, but her crying was all he needed to make his heart sink.

While he listened to his mom talk, Tsuna started to catch his breath. He was panting heavily and his face was red, as he had been yelling for some time now.

"You're _defending_ him?" Tsuna shouted suddenly in disgust, startling Gokudera enough to make him jump. "After you watched him verbally abuse both me _and _my boyfriend, then physically abuse me later!"

Gokudera suddenly felt like he was going to be sick. He heard more desperate pleading on the other end of the phone.

"_A misunderstanding?_ There was nothing to misunderstand! Do you honestly expect me to believe that I'm misunderstanding something?

"What, do you think I misheard him? Okay, Mom, maybe you can tell me where I misheard him. Did I mishear him when he called us fags? Did I mishear him when he tried to pry into my life by asking if I've had sex with Hayato? Did I mishear the multiple times he hit me?"

There was no argument on the other end this time.

"I want nothing to do with him anymore," Tsuna said, lowering his voice considerably. "I'm staying with Hayato for now. I'll come home when I'm ready." No sooner had he hit the "End" on his phone had Gokudera wrapped his arms around the brunette's small, fragile body. The Italian teen had his head buried into Tsuna's shoulder blade and in doing so had dislodged his glasses, which were now hanging limply off to the side. Gokudera squeezed Tsuna tighter as he felt Tsuna place a small hand on own.

"Tsuna," Gokudera muttered quietly.

Tsuna started shaking under Gokudera's embrace and he squeezed his boyfriend's hands with both of his.

Gokudera sighed contentedly and slid one of his hands lower until it was resting on Tsuna's creamy stomach and the other lifted his lover's head up so that their lips met passionately. Tsuna turned slowly in the silverette's grasp until their naked stomachs were pressed together and the brunette's arms were wrapped around Hayato's neck. Gokudera's arms stayed where they were for a few second but before long he found them traveling down the Vongola's smooth, peach back until they were resting on his ass protectively.

Gokudera deepened the kiss by sliding his tongue along Tsuna's teeth until he opened his mouth to the taller boy. Tsuna moaned as their tongues made contact, then again as they battled for dominance. Neither of them knew how or why it happened, but suddenly Tsuna's legs were wrapped around Gokudera's waist and Gokudera was supporting him in his arms and was pressing the smaller brunette up against the wall behind him. One of the Italian's long, pianist hands was tangled in Tsuna's unkempt brown hair while the other was holding his boss up against him.

Gokudera finally separated their lips but only for it to meet with more of Tsuna. His lips were now licking along his entire jawline until his reached up to his ear, which he bit down on seductively.

He then let go and said the only words that mattered. The words that would keep them together no matter what disaster hit them. The words that would hold their bond together forever.

"I love you."

And that's really all that mattered.


End file.
